Guides / Importing toys into GB · Updated 30 September 2026

Importing toys from Poland and the EU into Great Britain

What a UK importer must check, label and keep when bringing toys from Poland or elsewhere in the EU into Great Britain, and how the customs import fits alongside the safety rules.

This guide is also available in Polish.

Poland and the wider EU are major sources of toys for UK shops, online sellers and wholesalers. Once a consignment crosses into Great Britain, two separate sets of rules apply at the same time: customs rules, which decide how the goods are declared and what is paid at the border, and product safety rules, which decide whether you may sell the toys at all. This guide explains both, focusing on what the person bringing the toys into GB has to do.

Who counts as the importer

Under the Toys (Safety) Regulations 2011 as they apply in Great Britain, the importer is the business established in the UK that places a toy from outside the UK on the GB market. If you buy toys from a Polish manufacturer and sell them in England, Scotland or Wales, that is usually you. The regulations define a toy as a product designed or intended, whether or not exclusively, for use in play by children under 14 years old, so the scope is wider than many sellers expect: puzzles, plush figures, craft kits and some novelty items can all be caught.

Being the importer is a legal role, not just a customs label. It carries its own list of duties, separate from those of the manufacturer and of any distributor further down the chain.

CE or UKCA marking for toys

According to current gov.uk guidance, since 1 October 2024 businesses may use either the CE marking or the UKCA marking when placing toys on the GB market. In practice this means a toy made in Poland and correctly CE marked under EU rules can generally be sold in Great Britain without re-marking. The UKCA guidance lists toys among the product types for which CE marking is recognised alongside or in place of UKCA.

What matters is that the marking is backed by the right paperwork. If the toy carries the CE marking, the manufacturer's declaration of conformity will be an EU declaration of conformity; if it carries UKCA, it will be a UK declaration of conformity. Toys sold into the EU or Northern Ireland still need CE marking.

Importer duties before the toys go on sale

The gov.uk guidance on the regulations sets out what an importer must do. The core points are:

• Make sure the manufacturer has fulfilled its obligations before you place the toy on the GB market, including completing a declaration of conformity (UK DoC if UKCA marked, EU DoC if CE marked).
• Check the toy carries the required marking and the safety information and instructions it needs.
• Put your own name, registered trade name or mark and postal address on the toy, its packaging or an accompanying document.
• Make sure storage and transport conditions do not affect the toy's compliance.
• Carry out sample testing where appropriate and keep a register of complaints.
• Keep a copy of the declaration of conformity and make sure the technical documentation can be provided to enforcement authorities on request, both for 10 years.
• Be able to identify the other economic operators in your supply chain.

Your name and address on the product

The importer's identification details normally belong on the toy itself. The gov.uk guidance gives transitional flexibility for goods imported from the EEA or Switzerland: until 31 December 2027, the importer's details can be given elsewhere, typically on the packaging or in an accompanying document, instead of being affixed to the product. For toys sourced from Poland this is useful breathing space, but it is a temporary easement, so plan labels now for consignments that will arrive after that date.

Technical documentation

You do not normally write the technical documentation yourself; the manufacturer prepares it. Your job is to make sure it exists and that you can produce it for enforcement authorities when asked, for 10 years. Agree in your supply contract that the Polish manufacturer will provide it promptly. An importer who cannot obtain the file within a reasonable time is in a weak position if trading standards open an enquiry.

Customs import of toys from Poland

Product safety compliance does not replace customs formalities. Since the UK left the EU single market, goods coming from Poland are imports that need a customs declaration. The gov.uk step-by-step guidance for importing goods covers the following:

1. Get an EORI number starting with GB if you import into England, Wales or Scotland.
2. Find the right commodity code for each toy line. The code determines the rate of duty and whether any licence is needed.
3. Work out the customs value of the goods, which is used to calculate duty and import VAT.
4. Check whether you can pay less or no customs duty because the UK has a trade agreement with the country the goods come from. For EU-origin goods this depends on the rules of origin being met.
5. Make the declaration yourself or hire someone to deal with customs for you.
6. Consider postponed VAT accounting and keep records of commercial invoices and customs paperwork.

Most importers use an agent to submit the CDS import declaration. If you are unsure whether to do it in-house, read do you need a customs broker. Be clear about the type of representation: with direct representation the importer remains liable for the declaration; with indirect representation the agent is jointly liable.

How the two regimes connect

The customs declaration and the product safety rules are handled by different authorities, but the paperwork overlaps. The commercial invoice should describe the toys consistently with the commodity code used, and the manufacturer, product names and quantities should match what appears in the declaration of conformity. Gaps between these documents are a common reason for queries.

Enforcement of the toy safety rules in GB sits with local trading standards authorities and the Secretary of State. Clearing customs does not mean the toys have been checked for safety; a consignment can be cleared at the border and still be found non-compliant later on the shelf, at which point the importer may have to withdraw or recall it.

A practical checklist for Polish toy suppliers and UK buyers

• Confirm the product is a toy under the under-14 definition.
• Obtain the declaration of conformity that matches the marking on the toy.
• Agree how the technical documentation will be supplied on request.
• Decide where your importer name and address will appear, and when labels must move onto the product.
• Classify each toy line and confirm origin documents for any preferential duty claim.
• Appoint a customs agent, choose direct or indirect representation and set up EORI and VAT arrangements.
• Set up your complaints register and records retention for 10 years.

For a supplier-side view of the same topic, Easy Clearance has published an overview of toy exports to the UK and safety marking, aimed at EU businesses shipping into Great Britain.

Related guides

• Importing coffee into the UK: commodity codes, duty and VAT

• Importing furniture from Poland to the UK: a business guide

• EU sellers sending stock to UK fulfilment warehouses

Sources

• Toys (Safety) Regulations 2011: Great Britain (GOV.UK)
• Using the UKCA marking (GOV.UK)
• Import goods into the UK: step by step (GOV.UK)

General information, not legal, tax or customs advice. Rules change; confirm current requirements on gov.uk or with a registered agent before you ship.